PERSIMMON (Diospyros Virginiana, Linn.). A slender, 

 tall tree with handsome round head, rarely over 50 feet high; 

 twigs angular, often hollow. Bark broken into thick, scaly 

 plates, dark gray or brown; twigs reddish, pubescent, becom- 

 ing gray. Wood very hard, dark brown, with pale sapwood, 

 fine-grained, tough, like hickory; not durable in soil. Buds 

 small, pointed, reddish. Leaves alternate, simple, oval, 

 pointed, 4 to 6 inches long, thick, shining above, paler beneath; 

 petioles short, stout. Flowers June, after leaves, dioecious, 

 small, yellowish green: staminate in 3-flowered cymes, scarcely 

 opening; pistillate solitary, wide open, with imperfect stamens. 

 Fruit a reddish-yellow berry 1 to l inches in diameter, pulpy, 

 sweet, edible when ripe; astringent when green. Preferred 

 habitat, light, sandy soil, or moist woodlands, fence rows 

 and abandoned fields. Dist.: Rhode Island to Florida; west 

 to Kansas and Texas. Uses: Worthy of planting for its rich 

 green foliage in late summer, and its graceful habit. Comes 

 readily from seed, but is transplanted with difficulty. Fruit 

 shows little improvement in cultivation. Wood is used in 

 turnery, for shoe lasts, plane stocks, and shuttles. 



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